I found it!!!!

I have finally found the perfect tennis academy for us!
Most of top european juniors train there, only eastern European players (mostly from Serbia, Croatia). we ve already been there twice.
No lies or empty promises...
SIMPLY HARD WORK!
Unfortunately they are full thats why they dont advertise anywhere...
Before even to be considered they have to like your kids character...
To all of you , I genuinely wish good lick in your search for the perfect tennis place for your kids, i know how frustrating it is, especially if your budget is limited and you are not rich!
For us the search is over...

LOL.Julia just enjoy to tease you.Is there anywhere, anyplace, anything that is like good tennis school not to say good tennis academy.In next few articles I will describe my experience with sending a kid to a tennis academy.

If you spend so much money, time and energy to bring your child to certain level of play why in the world would you give all this freely, and even pay to send your own kid to a tennis academy.

Tennis academies are just machines for making money to their owners;they are not there to make world class tennis players except when they recognize that a child has potential, and has chance to become world class player.Then, they are willing to invest so that in the future will have multiple return on their investment.

In all the other cases sending a child to a tennis academy to become tennis professional is simple waste.In most cases child will not improve, but it is very possible to worsen even to quit tennis.

If you spend so much money, time and energy to bring your child to certain level of play why in the world would you give all this freely, and even pay to send your own kid to a tennis academy.

Tennis academies are just machines for making money to their owners;they are not there to make world class tennis players except when they recognize that a child has potential, and has chance to become world class player.Then, they are willing to invest so that in the future will have multiple return on their investment.

In all the other cases sending a child to a tennis academy to become tennis professional is simple waste.In most cases child will not improve, but it is very possible to worsen even to quit tennis.

Bubo ~ In their truest sense any good Academy while interviewing a potential new Student will ask the Parents & Child what they hope to get out of the time the child is with them. If the answer is, I want my kid to become a Professional Tennis Player, most Academies will tell you that they can not promise that. What they can promise is that your kid will know the Game of Tennis. They will have a complete understanding of what a life in Tennis means and they will attempt to provide all the tools necessary for them to have the best opportunity possible but at the end of the day, it's really all about what's inside of the Kid and how much they truly want it.

Coach

The only acceptable loss is when your opponent was better than you on that given day.
It is never acceptable to lose when your opponent was not.

Bubo ~ In their truest sense any good Academy while interviewing a potential new Student will ask the Parents & Child what they hope to get out of the time the child is with them. If the answer is, I want my kid to become a Professional Tennis Player, most Academies will tell you that they can not promise that.

Coach

That would be fair and honest approach.Unfortunately, there is not such academy.The most important ingredient of all tennis academies is marketing in any way possible.Even the ones who have a little bit decency they do not have staff which would be qualified to develop one&#168;s potential.

Bubo ~ What they can promise is that your kid will know the Game of Tennis. They will have a complete understanding of what a life in Tennis means and they will attempt to provide all the tools necessary for them to have the best opportunity possible but at the end of the day, it's really all about what's inside of the Kid and how much they truly want it.

Coach

Unfortunately, that is out of reality.For academies their students are just numbers.The more the better - more money for academy.On one hand they do not have qualified staff (low paid staff - less expense), on the other their goal was not to produce quality tennis players.Their primary goal is higher turn up for which they use allowed and not allowed means.

This first example happened in 2001.I was coaching my daughter at the time for 12 years, she was 18 years old and around 400 WTA.

I was very tired and there were some other reasons too so she went to Sanches - Casals tennis academy in Barcelona, Spain.She stayed there few days.She could not stand anymore because of poor hygienic conditions.

She was a t Sanchez-Casals academy for few days , and because of reasons I already mentioned, and other similar things she decided that this was not place for her.Right decision.

To me is on one hand unbelievable, and on the other quite normal that a player who is 400 WTA gets this treatement if one takes into account background of the people who actually run day to day operations(not the people whose name academy carries).

As she was already in Barcelona (city where tennis is very popular) she looked for some other academy.The guy by name Chavy ran a smaller tennis academy from one of the tennis club in Barcelona.The club was nice (in Barcelona is mild climate during the winter so tenis is played outside), and my daughter rented an appartment near by.
This academy did not have female player of her caliber (what I expected from tennis academies!), but it had male player from Barcelona who would come from time to time, and who used to play professional tennis.Chavy was a nice person as person, but did not have qualities needed for a tennis coach.
My daughter is very positive, and hard working so ex -professional player started to come more often, and at the end almost every day.If he was not around my daughter practiced against other male players from academy.It was obvious that my daughter as a player is above this tennis academy:She could not learn anything about tennis from Chavy, but she had good hiiting session especially with ex-pro.

Academy was going through the period of renesanse.Chavy was presenting my daughter to parents of new comers as his product, and promising them that their children will hit with my daughter.My daughter was smart, and respected herself so she did not hit with players who were way below her rank (she was paying for the academy , too).

To conclude, my daughter really did not have much benefits going to this academy except hitting with good hitting pertner what she could do without being at the tennis academy.It was wrong decision on her part to go to this academy because Chavy could not help her with her tennis, and this is reason why she went to tennis academy.

She was there for three month, and then returned home.As she left, tennis academy collapsed.The ex-pro stop comming, and all the other players started to leave because it was my daughter who attracted them and kept them there.When she was gone, they were gone.This has a lot to say about this tennis academy.

At the beginning of 2003, my daughter tried to find better tennis academy than ones from 2001.At the time she was around 300 WTA.She asked for advice some of her collegues on the tour, and Mortello Giorgia from Italy told that she knows very good tennis coach who coached world class players, and has his academy in southern Italy (city and port Ancone).My daughter went overthere, but being there for two dasy, he already presented her to the parents of potential players as his product (after two days, and when she came she was around 300 WTA).

Second thing he tried to do is that he tried to make out of her hitting partner of 12 year old Russian girl to impress her parents (my daughter was paying for being in his academy too).

Third he behaved as a dictator, so all these was too much for my daughter, and she left.

When she saw Mortello on the tour, Mortelo was laughing how she recommended my daughter bad tennis coach.As a matter of fact Mortello was coached by the same person not too long time ago.

I must ask my daughter the name of Italian coach from Ancone so that if one is deciding to go there, does not go because that person is no good neither as a coach nor as a person.

In January of 2004, my daughter played $10,000 in Boca Raton, Florida.The site of Chris Evert tennis academy was for this occasion the tournament site.

First of all, I have to say how much I admired Chris Evert as a tennis player.I liked her behavior, calmnes, stroke production, her looks.She was my favor in rivarly between her and Martina Navratilova, even she did not stand a chance.

Now, few words about her academy.As a tennis academy has everything one academy should have:a lot of tennis courts, gym, polayers dormitory etc.Unfortunately, that is all.No good players, no good coaches what should distinguish one tennis academy from another.
Mrs.Evert is not involved in day to day operation of the academy with her name if she is involved at all.During the tournamenet she was there every 2-3 days.She would play against young protegee one could see has no future in professional tennis.Evert was as professional as always, but it was easily noticable that she stopped improving at the time she stopped playing.Now, her play seems grotesque - on one hand she tries as hard as possible, and on the other her stokes are history.She is not able to teach anybody anything in stroke production,;she can help in tactics and psychology of game.Chris Evert still has good figure compared to Cassals, but this is all what is left of a legendary tennis champion.
She stopped developing her tennis knowledge the moment she stopped playing, and this fact reflects the choice of tennis coaches she employs.